Odekor - Day 9

Kenku.
The kenku were discovered in an isolated area of Ashada after the Empire defeated the elves.  Living in small villages among the swamps, it was assumed that the kenku were an engineered race, created by elf wizards centuries ago.  Why they were created remains unknown, as no kenku served in elf households or fought alongside elf masters during the war with the Empire.  When the elves were questioned about the kenku, the only thing they would say was that the kenku were their ‘shame.’  They divulged nothing else, even under torture.
As for the kenku themselves, they have almost no contact with outsiders before the Empire arrived.  They were described as a quiet, peaceful race by the general who discovered them, and suggested they might be of some benefit to the Empire.
In stark contrast to the treatment of the elves, the Empire handled the kenku gently.  Some left their homeland, traveling to Choan.  There were reports that a delegation of kenku met with the Emperor, who seemed quite charmed by them.
Over time, more kenku left Ashada.  They established small communities on all five continents, mostly in the human-controlled cities.  When the Pilgrim’s Road was complete, linking the Holy City of Kirr to the Prophet’s Nativity in Temm, it was the kenku who established guest houses along its length.
Some kenku gathered in remote locations and established contemplative monasteries. Others returned to Ashada to help repair the ravaged land.  Most lived quietly, content to serve the Empire and its citizens.
When the War began and the godstorms came, many kenku died. However, many survived. The kenku monasteries weathered the worst of the storms, as did their traditional homeland on Ashada.
After the aarakocra, kenku are the most populous race on Odekor.  Since the end of the War, they have slowly spread across the planet.  Their monasteries and guest houses are known to welcome weary travelers, although they allow no one to remain longer than three days.  It is reported that the kenku have reclaimed the Pilgrim’s Road, and secured the ruins of Temm.  There are whispers that the kenku are actively working to secure Kirr, hunting down and eliminating the undead that haunt that sacred place.
It is widely speculated that the kenku are seeking the Prophet’s Stair, that they plan to use the stair to ascend to the Fields of Joy and learn the fate of the gods.  Others speculate that they plan to cannibalize the Prophet’s Stair, to use its components to open a gateway to another plane, one untouched by the War.
The kenku themselves do not comment on their goals.  Monastic kenku takes oaths of silence, and only the abbot and hospitaler is permitted to speak with outsiders.  Secular kenku are naturally taciturn, and keep their counsel to themselves.